Winding down
Normally I write these posts on a Friday evening. Sometimes it’s later than that, but always before Monday so that my editor can give it some attention before I publish. On Friday though, I spent… Winding down
Just one more thing, an essay on troubleshooting
Over the weekend I watched — for the first time in my life — an episode of the long-running ABC and NBC police show Columbo, starring Peter Falk. I originally knew him from the film… Just one more thing, an essay on troubleshooting
T-SQL Tuesday Retrospective #012: Why DBA skills are necessary
This is my ongoing series of answering T-SQL Tuesday posts far too late to be of any use. Click here if you want to read previous entries. Paul Randal asked us in November 2010 why… T-SQL Tuesday Retrospective #012: Why DBA skills are necessary
Professionalism in the age of COVID-19
Some years ago, I wrote about what it means to be “professional” (and that it doesn’t mean having to wear a suit and tie). Recently a conversation broke out on Twitter about what it means… Professionalism in the age of COVID-19
Speaking at SQL Saturday Oregon
SQL Saturday Oregon — in the city of Portland — is taking place next weekend on Saturday November 2nd, 2019, and I’ll be presenting a revised edition of my session “Back to the Future with… Speaking at SQL Saturday Oregon
How to read documentation
I was thinking about a comment I made to my intern last week. She has been studiously attending to all the different things I do in my day (what many people consider a well-guarded secret!),… How to read documentation
Gatekeeping and Accessibility
In my final post about gatekeeping in technology, I have to come clean about something. Let’s go through this journey together. [Edit: At the end of August 2020, Grace Anderson — president and co-founder of I… Gatekeeping and Accessibility
Gatekeeping and the lack of diversity in the workplace
Recently I have become more vocal on Twitter and on my personal blog about my social activism. For the record, I have been an activist for LGBTQIA+ rights since 2001, so if this comes as… Gatekeeping and the lack of diversity in the workplace
Gatekeeping and why language matters
This is the second in a series of posts about gatekeeping in Information Technology and other fields. Negative terminology The language we use matters. In the first post I wrote that a number of words… Gatekeeping and why language matters
The importance of backups
I have been selected to present a second session for the PASS Summit in November this year. I wrote a few weeks ago about the Linux Learning Path and being a part of that, so… The importance of backups
All the signs were there, but we didn’t understand them: an essay on gatekeeping in IT
This is the first in a series of posts about gatekeeping in Information Technology and other fields. I am not the first — nor will I be the last — to say that the terminology… All the signs were there, but we didn’t understand them: an essay on gatekeeping in IT
It’s a UNIX system. I know this.
Jurassic Park was a great film. Steven Spielberg brought technology into the film era in a major way with computer generated dinosaurs and some now-classic film lines, many of which came from Jeff “Dreamboat” Goldblum.… It’s a UNIX system. I know this.
Back to the future
It’s January 2019 as I write this. I realized that I started on my journey with SQL Server in 1998, and I wanted to look at what’s changed through the lens of my career path.… Back to the future
A look back, and a look forward
Time flies. My father used to wear a t-shirt that claimed, “When you’re over the hill, you pick up speed.” I’m turning 40 in a few days. I still feel like a teenager in many… A look back, and a look forward
SQL Saturday in Calgary!
I am very happy (and terrified) to announce that Calgary will host its very first SQL Saturday, #607, on 29 April 2017. Noel Tan and I are organising it (though Noel is doing all the… SQL Saturday in Calgary!